Live streams

Poll Shows Hillary Clinton is Most Popular US Politician

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, Nov. 14, 2012.

TEXT SIZE - +

Reuters

February 08, 2013

WASHINGTON — Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is the most popular U.S. politician, surpassing fellow Democrats President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden as well as leading Republicans, a national poll found.

Sixty-one percent of American voters approve of Clinton, a possible U.S. presidential candidate for 2016, while 34 percent said they had an unfavorable opinion, according to the survey by Quinnipiac University released on Friday.

The poll comes one week after Clinton left her post as the nation's top diplomat. Clinton, 65, has said she does not see herself going back to politics but left open the possibility of such a return.

US President Barack Obama (R) unveils a series of proposals to counter gun violence as Vice President Joe Biden looks on during an event at the White House in Washington, January 16, 2013.

In comparison, 51 percent said they held a "favorable'' opinion of Obama while 46 percent had an unfavorable opinion. For Biden, 70, another potential 2016 contender, 46 percent gave him good marks compared to 41 percent who did not.

Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute, said the results show that after a positive burst for Obama following his re-election in November, the United States is quickly returning to partisan politics.

"The lower approval numbers for the president could be because once the election afterglow is gone, governing inevitably requires decisions that make some voters unhappy,'' he said, adding that Clinton won over more independents and Republicans.

Republican Florida Senator-elect Marco Rubio and his wife Jeanette smile as national TV stations call the race in his favor while watching results in Coral Gables, Florida, 2 Nov. 2010

Leading Republicans, including rising star Marco Rubio, a first-term senator from Florida, saw favorable opinions from one-third or fewer of those surveyed.

The poll found 27 percent held a favorable view of Rubio, 41, who could also be a player in the 2016 election. Fifteen percent held a negative view and 57 percent said they did not know enough about him.

Many respondents - 45 percent - also said they did not know enough about former Florida Governor Jeb Bush.

Rep. John Boehner (R - Ohio)

About 20 percent of those polled said they had a good opinion of House Speaker John Boehner, and 24 percent said they saw former Republican vice presidential candidate and U.S. Representative Paul Ryan positively. About one-third of voters said they did not know enough about either Republican. Obama will deliver the annual State of the Union address on Tuesday.

Overall, Quinnipiac researchers found 68 percent of U.S. voters said they are "somewhat dissatisfied'' or "very dissatisfied'' with the state of the nation today.

Another 31 percent said they are "very satisfied'' or "somewhat satisfied'' when asked about "the way things are going,'' according to the nationwide poll, which surveyed 1,772 registered voters between Jan. 30 and Monday and has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.3 percentage points.

You May Like

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang (L) speaks with the media as India

India, China Pledge to Overcome Border Tensions

Indian prime minister and Chinese premier attempt to move past tense standoff in the Himalayas during Delhi talks More

Burmese president Thein Sein took part in a town hall meeting at VOA in Washington, DC, May 19, 2013. (Alison Klein for VOA)

Burmese President Opens US Visit with VOA Town Hall Meeting

Ahead of his meeting with President Obama Monday, Thein Sein answered questions on human rights and economic development in his country More

US President Barack Obama, left, shakes hands with Burma

Washington Week: Focus on Burma, US Government Scandals

President Thein Sein visits the White House on Monday, Congressional probes of multiple scandals are continuing More

This forum has been closed.

Comment Sorting

Comments

by: Ripon from: Feni 3900, Bangladesh.

February 09, 2013 6:56 PM

Report Comment

Hillary will always be remembered for her tireless shuttling around the most crisis-laden parts of the global village & for her logical approach as well as view; and of course for her nice personality. Her getting outraged in Africa is amusing indeed. African women asked if her husband had approval on her that Africa visit. They asked it according to their cultural etiquette. But it conveys different meaning to other part of the globe. Along with Hillary, I also learned new lesson from that event. I appreciate Hillary. She knows when to stop. That's smart. Long live Hillary. My best regards for her. God bless#

Featured Videos

Your JavaScript is turned off or you have an old version of Adobe's Flash Player. Get the latest Flash player.

Video

Boston Bomber Spent 6 Months in Russia’s Most Violent Republic

The news of the Boston Marathon bombings circled the globe, and resonated here in Dagestan, a majority Muslim republic in Russia, on the shores of the Caspian Sea. Last year, Tamerlan Tsarnaev, the older of two brothers suspected of the bombings and a long-time Boston resident, returned to Dagestan, where he had lived for a year during his youth. Dagestan was the land of his maternal ancestors. But in the last two years, this republic of 3 million people has gained notoriety as the region with the highest level of political and religious violence in all of Russia. VOA's James Brooke reports from Makhachkala, Russia.